24. Collectivization Was Unpopular With Soviet Peasants – Especially the Best Soviet Peasants
To Stalin and those who thought like him, collectivization sounded good in theory – win, win, all around. In practice, it turned out to be a disaster. For one thing, most peasants were reluctant to give up their private plots in order to join the collective farms. That was especially so among the more prosperous peasants, known as kulaks. “Prosperous” when it came to peasants was relative in the Soviet context, often denoting those successful enough to afford a cow or a few pigs.
In addition to radical changes to traditional village life, collectivization forced peasants to forfeit their land and livestock to the collective farms. It also entailed selling their produce to the government at minimal prices, set by the government itself. Stalin’s USSR being what it was, it was decided to force collectivization down the peasants’ throats, and crush all who objected.